The EU Accession Criteria in the Field of Minority Protection and the Demands of Ethnic Minority Parties1
Publisher: Journal on Ethnopolitics and Minority Issues in Europe Volume: 24 pages, pdf Description: Countries in Central and Eastern Europe have a high level of ethnic diversity, and relatively homogenous nation states like Poland and the Czech Republic are rather the exceptions. The breakdown of multinational empires left large, often compactly settled and politicized ethnic minorities in newly formed states. The end of communist regimes and subsequent regime transformation and democratization provided a political opportunity structure for ethno-nationalist mobilization. Ethno-nationalist issues are thus highly salient and a potential root of conflict in the region.